Can a Windows Phone Web demo win over iPhone and Android users?

In a bid to put the Windows Phone user interface in front of more potential …

Keen to get consumers to take a look at Windows Phone, Microsoft has released a browser-based demo of its smartphone operating system for iPhone and Android users. The Web site gives users of these competing platforms a taste of the Windows Phone look and feel.

The Web site is not an "application" in any sense; it's an HTML and JavaScript mock-up of the Windows Phone user interface, populated with dummy data. There are eight sections in total: phone, people (contacts), messaging, e-mail, calendar, a pinned contact group, Local Scout, and pictures.

Each section gives you a brief walk-through, with on-screen prompts showing where to tap or swipe next to see the next screen, and each shows off some of the features that makes Windows Phone a little different from Android or iOS: the Facebook integration, face tagging, application integration, inbox linking, and so on.

At the end of each walkthrough, you can return to the Start screen, or click through to see a list of phones to buy.

Apple's latest Windows Phone device

A few of the iPhone and Android users here at the Orbiting HQ have given the site a spin to see if they might be tempted away from their platforms of choice.

The feelings were mainly positive, but perhaps not positive enough. Managing Editor Eric Bangeman, who can't imagine switching from the iPhone, said that the demo was well done, giving it "9 [out of 10] for quality and how it's pulled off", and the demo made him "slightly more interested"—but he rated this interest only as 6 out of 10, adding that he'd "never switch."

Ars contributor and iPhone user Chris Foresman called it a "slick demo" that works "surprisingly well," though the narrow scope meant that he only got a "limited feel" for how platform's interface works. Overall, the demo was "a really good way to introduce potential new users to the UI paradigm". But as a happy iPhone user, it wasn't enough to make him consider making the switch himself; while he rates the Windows Phone interface above those of webOS and Android, he still regards the iPhone as the king of the hill.

The limitations of the demo were also an issue for the iPhone and Android-using Ryan Paul. Although he found the demo "interesting," there were "fundamental questions" that it didn't answer. One of the concerns he had as a potential switcher was the quality of the Web browser, and similarly the quality and availability of third-party software. Neither of these can be found in the demo. He also found the experience of the demo less than compelling, due to the performance of the Nexus One device he used: animations were missing or slow, and scrolling was jerky. He had no such concerns when using the demo on an iPhone 4S.

Senior IT Reporter Jon Brodkin liked the site, and found Windows Phone's "different take on organizing data and applications" interesting. Brodkin added that he could see himself "using Windows Phone instead of Android"—if only he were still using Android. After using the platform for more than a year, he grew tired of reliability and stability issues, and he switched to the iPhone a few months ago. He says he's now "unlikely to switch," due in particular to the iPhone's "good backup and restore process."

Associate Writer Casey Johnston, who has used all three platforms, had mixed views. On the one hand she thought it was lacking as it gives "no idea of performance," but on the other, thought it was nonetheless valuable, because it shows off the design which is "kind of cool." It increased her interest in the platform, though the fact that the demo was so regimented and "on rails" put her off somewhat. Using a new Motorola RAZR, she had none of the performance problems that Ryan Paul suffered.

Our Creative Director Aurich Lawson was a little less impressed. "I'll tell you what [the demo] made me do: never want to use a Windows Phone phone." He wasn't a fan of the interface: "Everything is too big, or cuts off, it all feels super inefficient in general." Aurich did have one useful tip for iPhone users wanting to give it a spin: make the link into a homescreen bookmark so that it can be used with the chromeless Safari, for a more authentic experience.

So not a resounding success there. But with the exception of Aurich, most views were warm, if not exactly gushing. The demo probably won't be enough to make anyone drop their current smartphone and switch—but it might be enough to make them give Windows Phone a second look come upgrade time.

254 Reader Comments

I'm very impressed by how authentically they could recreate the WP7 feel and smoothness on a website, at least on my iPod touch. The little 3D flips must be with webGL, and swipe gestures work seamlessly too. The interface is beautiful on the retina display.

My largest concern with Windows Phone 7 isn't the interface, which seems great, but the awful upgrade availability, and that's the largest reason I'm sticking to Android for my next phone (i.e. the ability to root and install updated software)EDIT: Grammar.

It's an impressive demo, even on my aging iPhone 3GS. I'm not necessarily interested in switching any time soon, but I think it's a smart move to give users of your competitor's operating systems a chance to see what your product looks and feels like. If I were getting a brand new smartphone and wasn't already invested in the iPhone / iTunes / App Store system, I'd most certainly consider a WP7 device (alongside a number of Android devices).

I may be an iPhone user, but competition is a good thing. It's nice to have three viable, thriving ecosystems out there for consumers to choose from.

"On rails" is right. It was more like a slide show. It didn't really give me a feel for how the interface is supposed to work. I'll give them props for the technical aspect of it though, as I'm sure that was tough to put together.

The article picture looks kinda unreal. The red theme sure is striking btw. All you iphone users at ARS have no reason to switch as the iphone is flawless already. Aurich always has a bone to pick with MS every chance he gets and his opinions are irrelevant.

Interesting quandary at this stage of the smartphone game. Microsoft wants to show off their interface to potential switchers, yet the best experience will be had on phones that are at the beginning of a two-year contract. Meanwhile worse experiences will be had on phones whose time has come up for replacement. So as a sales tool this demo is unfortunately structurally flawed.

Nonetheless, I think it is an interesting experiment for Microsoft, and says a lot about how this aspect (mobile) of the company has changed over the years. They seem to do their best work when on the defensive. (You can read between the lines about what kind of work they do when there is little competition.)

The main reason I won't try out the windows phone is that Microsoft is a huge patent troll, using old and trivial patents to force its way into the market by bullying Android device makers into buying a license from them or just switch to the windows phone OS.

I can't even load the site on my Windows Phone device. Of course it would be pointless, but they may be making the site target specific mobile browser versions. I get the same "not supported on your device" message on IE9 on WP7.5.

The article picture looks kinda unreal. The red theme sure is striking btw. All you iphone users at ARS have no reason to switch as the iphone is flawless already. Aurich always has a bone to pick with MS every chance he gets and his opinions are irrelevant.

odd indeed, i went to arstechnia.com on my i phone to click through to see the demo, and all I get is a spam "you win" notification that will only let me click through to a claim your prize page. wonderful.

It's interesting why this demo appeared in the first place. I had a chance to speak with Kevin Shields of Nokia about a month ago. He stated quite clearly that although they are happy to switch people this is not their primary goal. They are rather targeting feature phone users to switch to smartphones and choose Nokia/WP7 as their first smart handset. Therefore, the experience WP7/Nokia tries to create is targeted to current feature phone users that should feel as comfortable with the new OS as possible. And it makes a lot of sense considering how intense is the competition in the smartphone market and how many feature phone users are out there.

Opposing to this demo that doesn't seem to make any sense at all. Sure it is nice but the only thought it may plant in the head of its user is that WP7 is more like a skin or a launcher over his existing device is nothing new and is not worth bothering. Strange move from MS. I fail to understand it.

odd indeed, i went to arstechnia.com on my i phone to click through to see the demo, and all I get is a spam "you win" notification that will only let me click through to a claim your prize page. wonderful.

...."due in particular to the iPhone's "good backup and restore process."" Really? Pre iOS 5 the backup restore process on the iPhone was absolutely horrible.

Navigating through the iTunes backup and restore can be annoying but the point is, it works, and I was familiar with it from using an iPod Touch. If my iPhone breaks I can get it back to the exact state I had it in before. With Android, I had to do multiple factory resets on a Motorola Droid, and then I upgraded to a 4G phone and it failed within two weeks forcing me into another factory reset. Each time I had to start from scratch in terms of downloading applications and customizing home screens, typing in passwords, etc. (Everyone says all your apps will automatically download or be listed in the Android market when you sign in after a factory reset, but in the five times I had to do a reset this only worked one out of the five times). People will say there are ways of backing up Android (just root the device and follow 18 steps) and HTC has some kind of backup process... but then what if you want to switch from an HTC phone to another vendor? You start over again. I was a big Android fan for a while, and I loved the fact that you could install applications from third party sources. This was really useful for tethering. But ultimately it wasn't stable enough and when I had to start over it took hours each time to get the phone back to the state I wanted it in. It wasn't worth the time, so I switched to a platform where I knew I could backup and restore if need be.

I like it over my iPhone because it's different. The tiles are much better on my eyes than icons. I also like how the People application integrates Facebook/Twitter/etc with email, SMS, and a traditional phone book. Oddly enough, ever since I got my phone I've increased my facebook usage (posting updates, responding to other friends' threads). I'll admit, Microsoft does have a way go when it comes to the apps department, but I've always felt that 95% of the apps available across any of the platforms were the software equivalent of a useless gadget. Most of the "Top 10" list of popular apps are junk, and I've found myself really using only two or three apps, so a 'weak' appstore isn't a showstopper for me. Of course, with Microsoft's acquisition of Skype, I find it appalling, to say the least that they don't have a Skype app for this phone yet.

I like it over my Android phone because it's not a piece of junk. You'll never find crappier phone than Sony's Xperia X10 mini Pro. Battery life to that phone was like gasoline to an H2. A full charge would barely take this phone through the day. It was also slow, had occasional glitches, for some odd reason only worked with one specific USB cable (every other cable forced the phone to reboot when I plugged it into my laptop), it developed this phantom touch issue where plugging it in to my car charger would generate random swipes and strokes, and even as I type this, it doesn't shut off completely unless I pull the battery. Shutting down the phone merely power cycles it. On top of that, none of the guides or apps I found were ever successful in rooting or loading a custom ROM. It feels like a hal-assed programming project and both Sony and Google should be ashamed for releasing this abomination. I'll probably never go back to an Android phone, and this phone is the reason.

I haven't tried the demo program, obviously because I already have a Windows phone, so I can't tell you how close Microsoft comes to replicating the actual usefulness of the OS. But I will tell you that I like how Microsoft integrates the most useful applications which makes me feel that I don't need a lot of the apps that I would normally download for Android or iOS. In the future, I may eventually switch back to iOS, but for now, I'm glad I have this phone.

I don't care, I want the iPhone, with the bigger Gb's... on a serious note, I am actually perfectly happy with my droid. The home screen on a Windpws phone just turns me off completely eith its ugly huge wacko icons. I don't need a dumb looking smartphone, I need a smart looking smartphone. That, and Android is um, a fair bit more open. Hell, I'd rather have an iPhone over a Microsoft based one ANY day.

Well, no. Is that even serious? They may not be able to do a touchscreen OS in Finland, but perhaps MS should ask their partners over at Nokia a few questions on how to sell phones. I hear they're good at that.

The reason I won't be switching from my iPhone to WP7 (even though I really love the Metro UI) is because I've spent an absolute fortune on iOS apps over the years, and I don't want to leave them all behind by changing to another platform. I'm not the only one in this boat.

No, Nokia knows how to build a touchscreen OS, it's called MeeGo Harmattan and comes on the N9. What they can't do is sell it, so MS would still be stuffed if they weren't paying Nokia to forget the N9 has ever existed.

Worked for me in Safari 5 without diddling with the UA string. Worked like a charm on my iPhone 4 (thanks for the app-tip, Aurich!)

My brother-in-law has a new Windows phone, so I've had a little play with a real device and I take my hat off to MS for (mostly) forging their own path with this. However, I find it amusing that the retina display on my iPhone 4 makes the interface look better in this demo than it does on an actual WP7 device. I also can't help a little guffaw that the crappy browser and performance on the Nexus One made the interface look *worse* than the real thing.Childish, I know. Sorry.

On the desktop, I couldn't get it to work in Firefox Nightly, IE9 or Safari 5.1.1. Apparently it works on Chrome though.

Worked fine for me in Safari 5.something once I set the user agent to the iPhone one.

My MacOSX Safari 5.1.1, with plugins, java and javascript all enabled, also produced a “sorry” message whether I used the native, iPad or iPhone user agent. The only odd attribute: I have removed Flash from my plugins folder. Or perhaps they're using one of my 4 javascript blacklist sites.